Dell Latitude 14" 5400 2019, Core i5-8365U, 32GB, 1TB SSD, Black

32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD for under $500 is the headline here. But that CPU is in the 9th percentile, which means it's slower than 91% of laptops we've tested. It's a multitasking machine for light work, not a performance laptop.

Let's be real about that CPU. The Core i5-8365U is a 4-core chip from 2019, and it shows. It's in the 9th percentile of our database, which puts it near the bottom of the charts for modern laptops. Web browsing and Office work? Totally fine. Anything heavier than that and you'll feel the age. The integrated Intel UHD Graphics is also a weak spot, landing in the 36th percentile. Don't expect to do any gaming on this thing, our gaming score for it is 13.6 out of 100, which is one of the worst we've seen.

But here's the twist: that 32GB of RAM is doing a lot of heavy lifting. It's in the 73rd percentile, which is well above average, and it means you can keep a ridiculous number of browser tabs and Office documents open without the machine choking. The 1TB SSD is also solid, sitting in the 67th percentile. Boot times and app launches feel snappy, even if the processor underneath is wheezing. It's a weird combo, like putting racing tires on a minivan, but for multitasking office work, it actually works.

Stacked against the Apple MacBook Air M4, the Latitude 5400 looks ancient. The M4's CPU would embarrass the i5-8365U in any benchmark you throw at it. The MSI Prestige and ASUS Zenbook are similarly in a different league for performance. But here's the thing: none of those machines cost $450. The Lenovo ThinkPad E14 Gen 7 is probably the closest competitor in spirit, another business-focused machine, but even that has a newer processor. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition has a better screen and build quality, but again, you're paying for it. The Latitude 5400 wins on one specific metric: RAM per dollar. 32GB at this price is hard to find anywhere else.

At $449 to $454 USD, this is a budget-friendly way to get 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. That's the whole pitch. You're not paying for speed, you're paying for memory and storage capacity. The CAD listing at $565 and MXN listing at 8,292 pesos follow the same pattern. For comparison, the Apple MacBook Air M4 costs several times more, but it also runs circles around this thing in every performance metric. If your workflow is browser tabs, spreadsheets, and email, this is a lot of machine for under $500. If you need to edit video or run anything demanding, you're better off saving up.

The Dell Latitude 5400 is a renewed business laptop that leans hard into two things: RAM and storage. You get 32GB of DDR4 and a 1TB SSD, which is frankly overkill for the 8th Gen Intel Core i5-8365U sitting inside. That CPU lands in the 9th percentile of our database, which means it's slower than 91% of the laptops we've tested. But for the right kind of work, this thing still makes sense.

At 1.45kg with a 14-inch FHD touchscreen, it's a portable machine that feels more premium than its age suggests. The 3.8-star rating from 189 reviews tells a story of a laptop that's great when it works, but has some rough edges. Battery life is a wildcard, with owners reporting anywhere from 3 to 5 hours depending on what they're doing. That's not great, but it's also not surprising for a renewed unit with an unknown battery history.

Skip this if you need any kind of real performance. The CPU is in the 9th percentile, which means it's slower than 91% of laptops we've tested. Gamers should absolutely look elsewhere, the gaming score of 13.6 out of 100 is a real letdown. If you care about screen quality, the 21st percentile ranking means the display is below average. And if reliability is a top concern, the 33rd percentile ranking combined with reports of overheating should give you pause. This is a machine for light office work and web browsing, nothing more.

The Dell Latitude 5400 is a weird machine. It's got a CPU that belongs in a museum paired with RAM that would make a gaming rig jealous. For $450, it's a solid choice if you're a tab hoarder who lives in Office 365 and doesn't care about gaming or heavy creative work. The 3.8-star rating reflects that reality: owners who use it for light work are happy, owners who push it harder are not. If you need a cheap, portable workhorse with tons of memory and storage, this is a decent buy. Just don't expect it to be fast.